advent

Most tension and emotional escalation comes from a core human need – trying to get what we want, to get our needs or expectations met. The most dangerous phrase to hear at Christmas is “I was secretly hoping for.” An unvoiced hope is dangerous.

Advent season ends with Mary, Joseph, Jesus and a motley crew of shepherds, wise men and innkeepers gathered together in a stable; for each person the journey starts alone. It is the same for us. This aloneness is an extraordinary opportunity. When we are alone, we are left with no choice but to be confronted with ourselves. Our fears, hopes, our dreams and expectations in a season of expectations.

Christmas’ dirty secret is that there’s no such thing as a universally perfect Christmas. In fact, we rarely talk about the anger, tension, stress and emotional turmoil that so many go through in trying to meet a perfect myth. So, it’s December 28th. You have 360 days, give or take, to work on new strategies for a less angry, sad, lonely, bitter, stressful Christmas next year.

Baking shortbread is about the relationship of butter, temperature and flour. Similarly, tradition is about the relationship between the past, the present and the future. We urgently need new traditions that make sense of the Advent season, the past, present and future of religion and religious ritual.

Regardless of your religious beliefs, the Advent season screams out, ‘Notice me – I have something to remind you of.’ Something human, something important about the power of leaning in to your dreams, about expecting again, about waiting and about Hope.